Molten Hot Deception
-It has been a VERY strange and eventful set of cycles for Blast Off. VERY strange. And did we mention, uh... eventful? Like- MUCH more *eventful* than he hardly even knows what to do with. Ever since he woke up in his new body, the Combaticon has fought feelings of doubt and loneliness- a sense that he is destined to be alone. He's even tried to just go *with* that, saying how he's OK with that. It's fine! It's great! He doesn't care! Lonely, pffft, him? And then suddenly he's NOT alone. He has met new people, people with meaning in his life. People like Swift Blade, who helped save his life. Maybe more than once. There's Shiftlock, then Whirl, then Starchamber. The latter two happening JUST this PAST WEEK. We're talking ...uh, well, let's leave it at "eventful", Ok? Like getting /REALLY/ up close and personal. REALLY hint hint. Don't tell Megatron about the fling with Whirl. It was just ONE time. ... Okay, TWO. BUT NEVER AGAIN. Right? Anyway, Blast Off is feeling much better about himself now. Starchamber brought healing to the traumatized shuttle, and his experiences with Feint are still there, but seem a much paler echo than the heavy shadow she once was. And so now the shuttleformer walks down the street, near where the Forge used to be- but he's just looking at his messages and realizing the Forge UP and MOVED while he was away. OOps. Well- he WAS kind of busy with other things.... -Swift Blade is also looking for the Forge. Instead she finds a Blast Off. Not being psychic, she doesn't know there's been BIG CHANGES in the mech's life. Still, as always, she is pleased to see him in her rather undemonstrative way. Quietly she approaches him and inclines her head when she's at a good 'conversational' distance. "Good cycle," she greets him with a faint smile. -Overhead, someone is lurking in the skies, circling the area like a hawk searching for the perfect prey. Someone who Blast Off hasn't seen for a while, and is probably glad for it. However, that situation is about to change...for the worse. -Blast Off looks up from his datapad, and the first thing Swift Blade may notice is a sense of calm he seems to have- a calm he's been missing for awhile. He doesn't jump or flinch at her appearance. Instead, he seems pleased. "Swift Blade." The shuttleformer turns to face her, then glances off towards where the Forge used to be. "It.. it appears the Forge was moved again." Then he looks back to her. It's been a bit of time since he's seen her. "It is good to see you." And it is, though... why is there a sudden flicker of awkwardness in the back of his head? He's not sure. There's no reason for it... Then, speaking of someone he hasn't seen in awhile... there's the sound of someone flying overhead. The shuttle glances up- and the calm demeanor hiccups just a little. Slaaaag. He becomes still, gazing intently up in the air at Quantum as his blaster appears in his hand. "Swift Blade, we have trouble..." -Whatever Swift Blade was going to say about the Forge being moved is cut short as she looks skywards. Yup, that looks like trouble to her, and not the semi-benevolent but mostly annoying kind. It's the kind that is vicious and full of intent as far as she can tell. Even so, she doesn't hate this mech. So far not a single being currently on Cybertron has the full force of her hatred: that is reserved for the Quintessons. "Suggestions?" she asks Blast Off, not sure what the Combaticon wants to DO about this particular type of trouble. And she looks a bit sad too; for a few moments Blast Off was radiating a kind of calm she had seldom seen him with, and it's already been disrupted. -Quantum continues to circle the area, monitoring his...targets. He doesn't appear to have realized he's been made, but there's no telling from this distance anyway... -Blast Off fingers tighten their grip on his weapon as he studies the craft in the sky. "Let's find some cover... just in case we haven't been spotted, there's no reason to draw attention to ourselves. Knowing him, if he KNOWS I'm here he'll be dead set on conducting another one of his crackpot ideas to kill me..." He lets out a light *huff* as he starts making his way towards a covered walkway and the potential safety of a buildihng nearby... -Swift Blade doesn't draw her swords /just/ yet then, but she does follow Blast Off to cover. "I hadn't anticipated this sort of thing happening today," she notes quietly. She's not terribly pleased with the prospect of having to fight, but she's also not going to shy away from it either. Keeping her optics focused on Blast Off for now, she relies mostly on her audials. After all, if they haven't given away that they've seen him, looking around anxiously would surely change that. -Quantum suddenly swoops down out of the sky, transforming and landing on top of the awning the two of them are headed toward. Instead of looking angry, though, he actually has somewhat of a triumphant glint in his optics, as if he's quite satisfied with himself for something. "Well, well, well. If it isn't Blast Off, savior of Nyon." He laughs. "Still alive, despite everything that's happened to him!" -Blast Off allows himself a small sigh. "No... one rarely *expects* these sort of things... they just happen when they happen. And Quantum, unfortunately, keeps happening again and again. First he's trying to.... well, trying to pretend to be my friend, then he's trying to trick me into blowing myself up. He doesn't know when to QUIT. So he's inept, but just determined enough to be dangerous..." He has a very low opinion of the other space mech, obviously, and it's rare for him to have low opinions of fellow space craft. But perhaps understandable by this point in time. Alas, Quantum's not as incompetent as Blast Off might hope, and he lands up above them- and *smirks*. The shuttleformer's optics narrow as he looks up, drawing his weapon up towards the other spacemech. His cultured drawl sounds mildly annoyed. "Of COURSE I am alive. You didn't think I was really going to fall for your little parlor tricks, did you? You don't really think you're going to somehow succeed *this time*, do you? You need to find another hobby. Now leave us be, before I shoot you." -Swift Blade narrows her optics for a moment as she hears someone land atop the awning. Then she tilts her head to the side. For the moment she doesn't speak to him directly, but rather watches to see what Blast Off is going to say and do. Still, her form is tensed, ready to take action if it becomes necessary. Blast Off gives Quantum fair warning, which she approves of. She nods once to Blast Off, then turns her optics back to Quantum. "You seem rather cheerful, all things considered," she points out. Generally she's a rather trusting individual, but considering the venom with which he spoke to her last time, even she has to be somewhat suspicious by this behavior. -Quantum chuckles. "Why yes, an astute observation, Swift Blade," He begins, also drawing his own weapon and casually brandishing it. "And in fact, Blast Off, I've realized that killing you will only bring me -temporary- satisfaction. It won't bring Sublight back, and it will certainly not fill the void I have now that he's gone." So why is he -happy- about it? "It's...actually pointless." -This does not make Blast Off any happier. In fact, it just makes him more suspicious. "Ah. Well, good. I'm glad you've finally come to your senses. Now if you will just be ON YOUR WAY. So shall we." As he states this, his grip on his weapon remains firm and he radios Swift Blade, << He's planning something. I just know it. Prepare yourself. >> And he begins stepping away slowly, keeping his optics on Quantum. -Astute is a pretty good word to describe Swift Blade. For the most part. Whatever Quantum might be alluding to right now, however, is beyond her scope of how she understands her fellow Cybertronians. "That sounds much more reasonable. Again, I'm sorry that you suffered a loss, but you're right; killing Blast Off will not bring back the one who was dear to you," she says. She knows why Blast Off did what he did, and while she doesn't approve of it exactly, she also knows how much fear the mech has for being taken in. << I don't know what he has in mind, but I am not convinced entirely that he has done such an about-face,>> she returns to Blast Off. She follows him again, but just as before, she is ready to move faster if needs be. -"I will!" Quantum laughs wryly. "In fact, I just -stopped by- to let you know, so that you wouldn't have to worry about me trying to kill you any more!" He calls out after them. "After all, I'm sure you have a lot of -other- slag to worry about, don't you? Wouldn't be polite to just let you assume I'm still out to get you!" -Riiight. Blast Off believes this- not. "I... I see." He doesn't sound that convinced. "Yes. Very well then, I wish you the best in your new endeavors -that *don't* include me. Very... polite of you, then. Worthy of a space craft." He still doesn't take his optics off Quantum. -Maybe the mech's head has been played with. It seems a little too common on Cybertron, when it shouldn't be happening period. "Are you certain you are feeling alright?" Swift Blade has to inquire of Quantum. He certainly doesn't sound like himself. Then again, she hardly knows the mech very well. But from all reports he was far too interested in Blast Off's demise to change so abruptly and completely. Reprogramming could do that for him, however. With all this, Swift Blade moves a little closer to Blast Off, not so much because she's afraid and needs comfort, but because she knows that their fightings styles can compliment each other. She can help him keep the distances he requires to use those sharp shooting skills of his that are hampered by the close combat that she thrives on. -"Thanks!" Quantum says cheerfully, and though Blast Off doesn't take his optics off of him, he turns away and starts to walk in the other direction. But he stops when Swiftblade asks him a question about his own well-being. "Well I don't even know, to be honest." He jumps down off of the awning. "I've had a weird few deca-cycles, kinda. You know, I can see that Blast Off will never be comfortable around me, but you seem to be...different. A little more understanding." -And this time, Blast Off doesn't seem as twitchy as he has lately when Swift Blade moves in closer. In fact, he seems just fine with it and approves the tactical move. However, he *is* twitchy when Quantum approaches. Well, not twithcy, but certainly tense. His weapon remains drawn, though given the other mech's conversational nature it's been brought down so it doesn't point right at him anymore. Still, he wants Quantum to go. "Yes, she's rather... patient. Now, if you will be on your way...?" Hint hint? -"If things had been more equitable on this planet to begin with, I doubt Blast Off and your friend would have come into the altercation that you did. In many ways the planet makes victims of us all. To start blaming individuals would mean we would have to do a lot of untangling to sort out where the true trouble began," says Swift Blade. While she doesn't entirely trust the mech, she also isn't the kind to give someone the silent treatment. It's completely reasonable that Blast Off would want Quantum gone. She certainly wouldn't mind if he left also, though her need is much less pressing. "It would be seen as a show of good faith if you were to leave for now, even if possibly in the future things could become more settled," she says evenly. -"I would definitely agree with that. But what happened, happened. Nothing we can do to change it." Quantum nods, then shrugs. He seems a bit disappointed when she wants him to leave, too. "Oh...well, I thought we could--" He sighs. "I guess not. Never mind." The other spacer turns around then, starting to walk away again. -Blast Off glances towards Swift Blade, but he says nothing. There isn't anything for him to say- anything that wouldn't just trigger the other mech again potentially, at least. And then, finally, Quantum seems to get the hint. But the Combaticon still doesn't trust the other space alt, and keeps watching him, intending to watch him go out of sight. Qunatum's lied too many times before, there's little reason for him to expect him to stop now. -Dangerous and slightly awkward situations are like a giant magnet to Whirl; no matter where he is, he always manages to finds himself drawn to them. Today is no different and just as the cyclops turns a corner, he almost collides head on with Quantum. "Woah! Watch where you're going, jerk-face!" There's a quick pause and then Whirl snaps his claws together. "Wait, I know you. You're uh.. Dang, what was your name? Oh yeah! Quantum, right?" He throws an arm around the other mech's shoulders like they were best buddies. "It's been a long time since I saw you. What are you up to? Are you still trying to kill Blast Off?" This is the only thing he knows about the guy so of course he's going to ask about it. -Trust is important to Swift Blade, which is why she's rather honest. It's less about a moral abstract and more about how lying strains things with other beings. Oh, yeah, and the fact that there were severe penalties for lying during her millions of years as a slave. That helped. As Whirl nearly smacks right into Quantum, she almost smiles. But Whirl has the delicacy of a punch to the face and the smile soon vanishes. "Whirl, that might not be the best approach right now," she murmurs softly. "There will be other times, Quantum," she says gently. -Quantum walks right into Whirl, who addresses him in his usual callous manner. He also takes a moment to recognize the mech. Oh, right. That guy. He chuckles. "No, actually--but what's it to you?" he inquires. He glances back at Swiftblade as she answers him. "I guess so." The spacer sighs, still sounding a bit disappointed. Back to Whirl. "What, you got a strut to pick with him, now?" -And suddenly there's /Whirl/. IN KAON. What the slaaag? Whirl. HERE. The shuttleformer's optics widen in shock. Ok, he was trying to keep prepared for anything, but it was a little hard to prepare for THAT. Blast Off again has nothing to say- not because he's trying to defuse the situation, but because he honestly *doesn't know what to say*. In fact his mouth is sort of hanging agape under that faceplate right now. -Yes, Kaon is one of the worst places Whirl could possibly be right now, but Kaon's streets sometimes have a special.. well, let's just call it a pharmaceutical, that Whirl is willing to take the risk for. It's not like life is that great for him anyway, so why not risk it all for one last /awesome/ high? Whirl is a troubled person. "I have a strut to pick with everyone, Quantum. Blast Off is just a.. special project, I guess." He nods his head. "I'm actually glad you decided to stop trying to kill him because then you and I would have a serious problem. I'M the only one who gets to kill him, understand? Yeah, you get it." Speaking of Blast Off, Whirl looks over to see the Combaticon himself along with Swift Blade. Oh, this is going to be fun. "Oh. Hey." -Swift Blade feels kind of BAD actually for sending Quantum on his way. But, primarily, she's more interested in Blast Off feeling comfortable. The other shuttle's 180 in attitude was a lot to absorb all at once. This she understands perfectly. "I will be happy to speak with you on another occassion if you so wish it," she says to Quantum. There's not a lot of reaction she has to Blast Off's continued quiet. It's not terribly out of the realm of his normal personality, so she doesn't think much of it, not knowing the extent of his association with Whirl. Speaking of Whirl, he gets a raise of her optic ridges. "I didn't think you had any particular issue with me," she states. She'd always been relatively kind to him. Of course, that might be a reason /for/ him to have an issue with her. You never can tell with Whirl. Still, she smiles gently at him. -"Hmm." Quantum considers Whirl's words. This could work out. He lowers his voice, pulling the clawed mech around the corner, out of sight of Blast Off and Swiftblade. He lowers his voice to barely above a whisper. "Tell you what, I'll let you kill him, but -I- get to kill the femme." "In front of him, while he's still alive and -watching-. You can hold him down and force him to watch it. And then you can kill him whenever. Sound like a plan?" Not that he -needs- Whirl's help...but this way could be more fun, right? -Blast Off is trying to keep his optics on Quantum but it's a little hard with WHIRRRL right there in the metal and circuitry. He finally finds words. To speak. "....What are.... you doing here?" His voice sounds a little flat, mainly because he's still processing this while also trying to keep an optic on things and ***heeey what is Quantum doing dragging Whirl away somewhere?***. Blast Off lets out a low *huffff*, then glances to Swift Blade. "We... we should go. Now." He starts walking away, while still keeping his head turned enough where he can see if they step back into sight again. -Whirl stares at Swift Blade for a moment. "Hm? What? Oh! No, you're cool. I'm just surprised at.. uh.." He STARES at Blast Off now. Really, really hard. He's about to say something but he finds himself being led around the same corner he originally emerged from. This is already a little weird but then Quantum starts talking. Wow, this escalated quickly. "So you /do/ still want to kill Blast Off." Had he known the shuttleformer was standing RIGHT THERE the whole time, he wouldn't have said anything about wanting to kill him; he just wanted to keep up appearances. "Your offer is extremely tempting and if it was anyone else I would do it faster than you can say 'go' but I'm afraid I'm not only going to have to decline but I'm going to have to cut your face off. You understand, right?" -"That sounds wise," Swift Blade agrees and will follow Blast Off. She's getting good at that. Then again, what else would you call trying to join the Decepticons? "You look ahead," she says, "I'll watch your back." Or, they could do it the other way around. But, if someone is going to get hit first, it's better that it is her. Tactically of course. Not having enhanced senses, she has no idea what Quantum and Whirl are saying to each other, but she definitely looks pleased at Whirl's summary that she is 'cool'. She figures that's about as close as praise will come from someone like Whirl. -Quantum smirks at Whirl's answer. "Bring it." He takes to the air quickly, and suddenly dives at Swiftblade in an attempt to grab her and fly away! Blast Off is -certain- to follow, right? -Blast Off glances over to Swift Blade, allowing himself a momentary bit of... what is this? Comraderie? Comfortableness in having a certain person nearby? While the standoffish shuttle doesn't seek *close* proximity, he makes no move to get too far, either, instead appearing perfectly fine the way things are. She has his back and he trusts her enough to believe that's a good thing. So he pays a little more attention to where he's going- though he *doesn't* trust Quantum, and he is /definitely/ wondering about Whirl (why is he here, what's he speaking to Quantum about, where's he going?)- so he glances back again just in time for Quantum to finally make his move. YEP. This is NOT a surprise. The spacecraft comes roaring at him (or so he believes, who else would he be going for?) and the Combaticon is ready for him! That gun whips up and fires as Quantum flies in... wait, not at him but at... Swift Blade? -Remember all those times Blast Off talked about how terrible Quantum was? Whirl probably should've taken them more seriously, a lesson he lurns too late when the mech takes off. Whirl runs out from behind the corner and into view again just in time to see Quantum take a dive at Swift Blade. No way, this can't really be happening, right? Everything went south so fast it's hard to believe it's real. Whirl runs after Quantum, shouting. "Blast Off! I screwed up! This guy is way crazier than I thought, help me kill him!" The cyclops takes a moment to steady himself and aim before cracking off a few shots from the guns mounted below his chest. Even the risk of hitting Swift Blade isn't enough to stop him, surely a few injuries are better than the grisly death he has planned for her. -Quantum manages to snatch Swiftblade off of her feet and fly over toward a large recycling plant. Though the Combaticon's shots slam into a wing, he continues forward, determined even as smoke starts to trail behind him. Somehow, even after this first injury, he manages to dodge Whirl's blasts. He lands on a rather shaky catwalk over the rim of a colossal vat full of hot molten slag, likely used to smelt discarded metal. As if the weakness of the structure, weren't enough, it doesn't even have any railings, probably because only disposables go up there, and even standing on them one can feel the heat rising from the hot liquid through the grill of the floor. "BLAST OFF!" he shouts, over the roar of the machinery. "You'd better come save your little damsel!" He taunts. "Or at the very -least- come watch her die, so she won't have to brave it alone!" A look of twisted delight is on his face as he stands there. He hasn't relieved Swiftblade of her weapons, as unwise as that may have been, however--the precipice they are standing on is rather precarious--one wrong move could send them both tumbling to their deaths. The vat is so full that the liquid is practically splashing up against the balcony...perhaps that is why it's so close to collapsing at this point. Their added weight doesn't help matters, either... -Blast Off strikes his target (finally, he's feeling like his mojo has returned some, and indeed his aim has improved again along with it)! Then Whirl comes bursting out from the street corner, Blast Off glancing at him before turning once again to shoot at Quantum and replying, "My /pleasure/." He's ready to be rid of this spacemech once and for all. Questions about Whirl will have to wait. Though as Whirl's shots seem to hit anywhere *but* Quantum, even zipping past Blast Off's /head/ at one point, he glances back again with a slight glare. Then his attention is back on Quantum- and Swift Blade. What the slag? Is Quantum after him- or *her*? His optics narrow again and he steps a little closer to the femme. And yet- not quite close enough, somehow. Quantum snatches Swift Blade away, leaving the shuttleformer to stand and stare in surprise... but only for a moment. The Combaticon *has* been watching and waiting and ready for some treachery, after all- and he's immediately in the air, transformed and after the other spacecraft. He's not playing around. Quantum's made it clear there's no time for such things. << Whirl..>> He radios, since they *did* exchange frequencies together just the other cycle, << I need a distraction... You come one way, and I'll go the other... She saved my life once, I will *not* allow her to die. >> To Swift Blade, he radios, << Get ready to fly... >> The shuttle circles around, waiting for Whirl to act. He hopes. He will, right? -Get ready to fly...as if she needed to be asked twice. Although soem part of her mind is screaming for her to get out of there, she doesn't struggle. Swift Blade isn't the sort to take the philosophy, 'If I'm going down, you're going with me' to spark. Instead she stays very still as she says, "You have spiraled out of control; I have done you no harm." Slowly she tries to turn around to face her abductor directly. She seems to have a habit of doing that. -Whirl just shrugs at Blast Off when he almost shoots him in the head. He's under a lot of pressure (this is all his fault after all) so he's bound to be a little sloppy. He watches the Combaticon transform and does the same, rising into the air around the same time he starts receiving Blast Off's transmissions. See? There were totally legit reasons for exchanging frequencies and this is a prime example. <> With roaring engines, Whirl comes barreling towards the mech and his hostage, weaving and bobbing almost erratically. -Blast Off is really unhappy about this. This is all kinds of wrong, seeing Swift Blade put in jeapardy like this. It sends a jolt of fear through the shuttle, in fact. He doesn't have the relationship he has (somehow) managed to find with Whirl or Starchamber with the Seeker, but they have been developing a friendship and a (very rare for him) trust nonetheless. She saved him when Quickswitch attacked and he *would* have been dragged off to prison and spark extraction or torture again. He likes having her around, and she is one of the handful of people he trusts on this whole planet. He will NOT let Quantum take here away. He's already had someone he cared about taken away- not this time. Not again. And now here he is, working with one of the few *other* people he trusts on this planet (odd, isn't it? Trust Whirl? And yet, unpredictability aside, he finds he *does*) against one of the people he trusts least. And as agitated as Blast Off feels about the situation, his outward appearance remains relatively calm. It's not time to lose his head, or his cool. It's time to focus on the task at hand and demonstrate that precise sniper skill. As Whirl comes barreling in towards Quantum, it appears the spacemech's focus is only on Blast Off. Alright, maybe they'll do this the other way then? Whatever the case, both of them come flying in at the same time. He lies just a bit. << And why her? A mere acquaintance? You're losing your grip, Quabntum- in more ways than one! >> With that- well, there is no time left. The shuttle comes barreling in, too, two aerial craft coming at Quantum from opposite ends at the same time. He can't focus on both at once! And Blast Off's shuttle arm reaches out in an attempt to snatch Swift Blade away from Qunatum- or perhaps push the space mech *IN* to the motlen slag. -"No one is making you do this except yourself," Swift Blade says flatly as she gets pushed. "Getting hurt doesn't give you the right to hurt others, regardless of how painful that hurt is." She frowns. "It not being personal will not make me any less dead if you get your way." If Cybertronians could sweat, she would be doing that now. As it is, her body is shimmering with the heat, the metal surface reflecting the pits below and giving her a rather hellish look. "Killing me will only make it right that your friend was killed. You can't have it both ways; it can't be okay for you to kill me if you're angry about the death of your friend." She doesn't cry out to the other mechs to 'save themselves'. Nor does she beg to be saved at all costs. Both would be putting more pressure on them than they need right now; she's not going to dictate to them even with her own life at stake. But she's not impassive; instead she's waiting for the right moment to MOVE. When Blast Off comes in for the strike, she makes her attempt to escape. -Whirl is an unlikely ally, yes, but surely even Blast Off would have to agree that he is worth it despite the risks his unpredictability brings. He's not nearly as close to Swift Blade as Blast Off is but she's never done him any harm and he'd rather not have her death or near death on his hands (claws?) Hopefully Swift Blade is able to escape in time because just as Whirl looks like he's going to crush them both with his alt mode, he transforms and plummets towards Quantum; claws drawn to rip and tear at whatever they can grab. "Hahahahaha! I told you I was going to cut off your face, you creep!" With any luck the both of them won't go tumbling into that molten hot liquid below them. -It's true, Quantum can't focus on both attacks at once coming from two different directions. However he doesn't seem to care. He lets go of Swiftblade as the two mechs approach, pushing her down toward the boiling metal. Will she be fast enough to scramble away, or will Blast Off manage to save her from harm before the hot liquid touches her? Meanwhile, Blast Off shoves him, although Whirl's claws are much more effective. Energon spurts, and he stumbles backward, falling onto the edge of the platform. Metal groans under the weight of the impact, threatening to collapse. -Whirl strikes, Blast Off sweeps in- but Quantum shoves Swift Blade towards the molten liquid. The shuttle instantly changes his trajectory, banking down towards the broiling hot miasma. It could scorch many- but Blast off is a *space shuttle*. His heat shields are built for extreme temperatures like this. He barely feels it, though he knows /she/ does, and there is no time. Scanners briefly sweep to see Whirl attacking Quantum as his shuttle arm reaches to try and grab her, then bank up fast if he does and get them the both out of there quickly. -The femme is sent hurdling towards the molten slag below, she feels the force of the heat wash against her face, the steam fogging up her optics, and then she is grabbed, snatched from the brink of, not only death, but a complete eradication of her entire being. Swift Blade, were she of a less sturdy nature, would probably be in hysterics by now. As it is, she is trembling, and Blast Off will be able to feel it. "Thank you Blast Off. And thank you Whirl," she says, and there will be an unusual quaver in her voice. As stoic as she can be, she does NOT want to die. "Now let's get out of here." -Whirl flexes his claws, admiring the purple stain of Quantum's energon upon their edges. As much as he hates his grotesque claws, he has to admit they look really nice when wet with the fluids of his opponents. "I don't know what your deal is with Blast Off," the cyclops says, closing in on Quantum. "I'm sure he did something stupid and he probably deserves your wrath, I don't know and I don't really care but you should know that when you screw with him..." A panel on his thigh retracts and he withdraws a pistol from inside of it, pointing it at the other mech. "You screw with me." Whirl points the pistol down and empties the entire clip into the fragile grating below them before giving it a nice hard stomp, finally pushing the metal to it's limit and causing it to crumble to pieces right under their feet. - Quantum scrambles to his feet, furious. He glares at Whirl, but for the most part seems to ignores him. Although he -is- noting in the back of his mind that the Combaticon seems to trust that one too. "This isn't over, Blast Off!" he shouts, his optics ablaze with anger. "I -will- make you pay! I -will- make you suffer for the rest of your Primus-forsaken life! I'm gonna strip you of everything and everyONE you ever cared about!" And then Whirl destroys the platform. It falls apart rather quickly, and Quantum attempts to get airborne before the molten metal touches him, but it really wasn't much of a distance to its surface--or else Swiftblade never would have been in danger in the first place! A splash from one of the pieces of debris clips him in the side, burning a hole in his body. And then that red foam-like substance starts to leak out again! It touches the side of the vat and suddenly that part of it vanishes and there is a gaping hole there, molten slag spilling out of it and into the rest of the recycling plant. Which -can't- be good. -Unlike all the cool people, Whirl doesn't have any sort of anti-gravity hardware installed on his body so the only way he can actually become airborne is to transform. Unfortunately, there's barely enough time to think about transforming before the floor collapses beneath them and Whirl is subjected to an excruciating pain when his legs slip beneath the surface of the molten slag. As tough as he is, he can't help but yell as his armor is melted down and the delicate machinery underneath gets burned up. Whirl scrambles for a section of platform that hasn't collapsed and pulls himself up ontop of it; the charred, almost skeletel remains of his legs dragging behind him. There's a loud creak of metal and the platform sinks a little, threatening to drop into the molten slag as well. He doesn't seem to care too much about that though, his focus on the sudden hole in the side of the vat. "What... the hell?" Did Quantum do that!? -Blast Off does feel her uncharacteristic trembling, but who can really blame her after what she's been through? As it is, the shuttle rolls once at the same time his shuttle arm tucks Swift Blade *inside* his cargo bay through an open door. << I have you, you are safe. >> Then... what did Whirl just do?! Slag... What do these people think he is, a hero?! PFFFT. The shuttle's engines growl with a little annoyance at that, but he can't exactly let Whirl fall into the molten slag either- so the spaceship banks once more as his shuttle arm reaches down again. The claws (yes, look, Whirl- he has claws too, in shuttle mode!) grasp the helicopter mech and pull him in towards Blast Off's cargo bay as well. Then Quantum starts leaking and.. no, that really *doesn't* look good at all. /To the pit with this./ /Not Blast Off's problem./ >:I He can only take so much *heroic* stuff in one day. The Combaticon's thrusters really come to life, roaring as the massive brown and purple ship rockets up, blasting off just like his name. It's an impressive sight- and sound. And hopefully Quantum will just fall in there and melt. Not that Blast Off tends to have that luck. -Swift Blade isn't clingy in general, but for the moment, she certainly /is/ clinging to Blast Off. She listens to Quantum explode with anger. The viciousness of the mech still doesn't anger her, but she feels a deep sorrow. Yet, would she be able to let it go if she came face to faces with the Quintessons again? For this, she has no answer. She winces as Whirl gets badly damaged. Hopefully this is fixable, but not being a medic or a frame engineer, she can't tell. "Are you alright Whirl?" she asks with genuine concern. "We have to get him somewhere to be looked after!" Obviously they can't take him to the Decepticons. Moving over towards him she puts a comforting hand on the side of his face. If he's lucky he'll pass out, and then at least, he won't be in pain. -Did Whirl just get shoved into Blast Off's cargo bay? How scandalous! Or at least it would be if they hadn't, you know, gotten so up close and personal just recently. Not to mention he's in far too much pain to be thinking about such things. "Hnnng!" He tries to stiffle the groans of pain. "Yeah, I'm just great. Now I can live my life without legs in addition to not having a face or hands." He's definitely not in a good place right now, but the hand Swift Blade places on him brings him SOME comfort. -As Blast Off's luck would have it, Quantum does kind of fall into the vat, but the leaking foam kind of saves him from perishing, actually...when it touches the liquid the boiling metal suddenly starts to just blink out of existence, just like the side of the vat had. Thus, he doesn't melt, and as such, this is -definitely- not over. Just a new chapter. -No, they can't take him to the Decepticons. The shuttle's thoughts drift immediately to Nyon. Hot Rod and his crew are the ones who Whirl knows best anyway, and they will look after him. << Nyon. I'll head to Nyon. >> Slag, now he's a rust-washed TAXI SERVICE for the SICK! Cargo transport, that's all they think he is! At least those are the thoughts that pass through his CPU unspoken. But truthfully, he feels a little bit shaken himself- though he maintains his aloof demeanor. His voice doesn't betray his concerns, though his actions do as he rockets away. << I have a medkit in my side compartment just to your right- see it there, Swift Blade? You will find a few things to staunch the flow of energon. >> And stop that leaking on his cargo bay floor.... which normally he'd be complaining a *lot* about, but.... Whirl can't exactly help it right now. << And also... my apologies, again, Swift Blade. I seem to bring trouble with me... I did not mean to get you swpet up in it. Again. >> -Swift Blade is probably one of the last people who would mock or deride Blast Off's interactions with Whirl for whatever that's worth. Still, she wouldn't try to pry that sort of information out of him. For now she gets Whirl in the most stable position she can once the energon flow has stopped and keeps an optic on the wounds, cleaning any further leakage that might happen. "I wish there was another way, but after his deception today, I believe that he's more unhinged than I had previously believed." For all that Whirl is also unhinged, she can't imagine him doing something of this nature. No, Whirl would not bother with the deception most likely; he'd just try to shred the person and be done with it. Not that she approves of such a thing either. "His quest for vengence must be stopped." -Blast Off's engines rumble a little. << ...Yes. Before he blows up the *other* half of Nyon, or causes Kaon to disappear, or... whatever the *next* thing will be. >> Yes, he needs to end this for once and for all. He'll need to think of how. << Anyway. Thank you, and prepare yourself, we shall arrive shortly. >> Rocketships are *fast* after all.